The Web's Awake: An Introduction to the Field of Web Science and the Concept of Web Life

Citation

Doldi, L. (2008), "The Web's Awake: An Introduction to the Field of Web Science and the Concept of Web Life", Online Information Review, Vol. 32 No. 1, pp. 115-116. https://doi.org/10.1108/14684520810866029

Undoubtedly the web is having a profound effect on our existence, pulling down the barriers of time and distance and giving unique opportunities for ordinary people to access untold amounts of information. Further, it has provided a collection of technologies that are having a profound effect on mankind, changing the way in which we interact with each other. The web's effect on mankind has been compared by the author of this book to the effect of other technical achievements as the wheel, the plough and steam‐produced power. All these achievements have irreversibly changed human life; but unlike all these great technologies the web has the characteristic of growing and becoming increasingly complex. This fact – so the author's theory – makes it outstrip human control as if it were on the way to taking on a life of its own.

The idea of the web as an organism, a new post‐human species, is the leading inspiration of this book. The author, senior IT architect at IBM and a member of the World Wide Web Consortium, examines a number of emergent characteristics of the web that have not been programmed, but have rather evolved. Starting from theories in natural science, mathematics and physics, the author shows many aspects where the web and living organisms share common points. For example: the capability to evolve and become a more complex system, the ability to transmit information, and the ability to bring order out of chaos. All these characteristics, and many others, allow – so theorises the author – the comparison between the web and a living organism.

The author recognises that humans are the driving force behind the web. Without them the web would not have been created and would certainly not have evolved to its current position. Humans are intrinsic to its very being. Nevertheless, they have become assimilated into its very fabric. Actually, it would be unthinkable today to locate information without the web. This is a gorgeous evolution, not planned, not even predicted, but is all that enough to speak about a new organism? The question remains partly open. But answering this question was not the aim of the author: “This is not a book of definitive answers or rigorous proof. It is a book about new perspectives” – provoking, alluring and futuristic.

The author addresses a wide range of readers, those wanting a general understand of the web science and web life and those who are looking for a deeper appreciation of the topic, those interested in biology and in IT engineering. The book is clearly written, free of jargon and in plain English. Nevertheless, because of the complex and abstract area being discussed, this is not a book you read quickly, even if enthralling and compelling.